A very welcome wee week:

• American Vampire: Second Cycle #4 (DC/Vertigo): I’ve been disappointed by the Second Cycle thus far.  It pales in comparison to the first go-round; it’s as if the life has been sucked out of the story by some supernatural force–because there’s no way Snyder’d stumble so badly on his signature series without there being a unreasonable explanation, right?  Damn thing’s gone from blockbuster to B-movie.  At the end of #3, I was like “What the devil?” and “What?  The devil?” at the very same time!  Followed with an “Ugh.”  I’m only considering it because it’s a light week.  Smart move’ll be to pass.  Honest self-assessment: on Wednesdays, my IQ drops more than a few points.
• Grayson #1 (DC): I’ve always preferred Dick over all of the other Robins.  Sure, his transition to Nightwing was tough to swallow at first; but in the end it made terrific sense; and the character has played an rock solid role in the DCU and in the Bat-family ever since.  This move–to super-spy–seems more like engineered evolution, meekly bending toward what’s trending; see: it has me thinking Winter Soldier–which means I won’t be able to help myself from comparing Seely’s work to Brubaker’s.  Yeah, yeah, I know: but all’s fair in love, war–and comics.

• Royals: Masters of War #6 (DC/Vertigo): The penultimate issue ended with a kingly twist–a perfect set up for the finale.  Rob Williams and Simon Coleby have packed five issues of Royals with high energy and explosive moments.  Should probably wear a bomb-disposal get-up while reading this one.
• All-New X-Men #29 (Marvel): Still waiting on #28.  Wonder if I should take it as a sign and pass.  Followers will note that for 24 issues–I skipped #25–I begged for the strength to leave Bendis’s mutant massacre on the shelf and that #26 stripped me of all complaints and left me believing in Bendis anew–all the way through #27.  That’s right: still waiting on #28.
• Daredevil #5 (Marvel): Time to find out about Foggy.  A quick note on #.1: Surprisingly good.  I’m generally wary of .this and .that issues; but this one’s got a clear purpose: filling in some of the blanks between New York and San Francisco.

• Original Sin #5.1 (Marvel): As much as I’d like to avoid the Original Sin trap, I can’t here: Al Ewing and Jason Aaron are serving up a little Loki.  Oh, and Thor, too.  Can’t forget Thor.
• The United States of Murder #3 (Marvel): Bendis is in his criminal element here.  If there were any question after a lackluster #1, then #2 is all the proof you’ll ever need.
• Armor Hunters #2 (Valiant): #1 was a solid opening salvo and was supported very well by a strong X-O Manowar #26.  Super-high praise: kudos to Venditti for making me feel like I did when I read comics as a kid.

• Doc Savage #7 (Dynamite): Has lost some of its shine.  As time has gone on, The Man of Bronze has become The Man of Boredom.  Can’t imagine I’ll be sticking around much longer without a real knockout of an issue.
• The Life After #1 (Oni Press): Joshua Hale Fialkov is a must try considering the tremendous job he’s doing with time travel on The Bunker.  The guy can flat-out tell a story.

• Magnus: Robot Fighter #5 (Dynamite): #4 ended on a pair of strong notes.  The series, in general, has been my favorite of the Gold Key books.  Could it be–I don’t know–because Van Lente’s at the top of his game right now?  You just nodded in the affirmative, didn’t you?

• Thomas Alsop #2 (BOOM!): #1 was a BIG surprise!  Chris Miskiewicz and Palle Schmidt delivered an excellent set-up issue that balances well the spirited situation in the present and the foundation that was laid in the past.  Can’t wait to get into this one.

What are you looking forward to this week?

Turning pages,

Scott